The videogame music thread

[ratsoalbion]

Cool pick, nice post.

Welcome to the forum Lyngstud!

[Flabyo]

Playing "The Flame in the Flood", has a great country soundtrack... here's the title tune...



And while I wouldn't go so far as to say it's a favourite, it's definitely an ear worm...



RAAAA-SHIIII-DOOOOOOOO

[Electric Crocosaurus]

I see that someone else has raised Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, but I can't recall hearing it come up on the show so far. It's difficult to choose one track from what, in my opinion, is one of the finest musical scores of the past ten years (across all media) but I've gone for the closing track. Eschewing the lush orchestration from the rest of the score, this choral piece (ably performed by the London and Metro Voices) is both full stop and repeat symbol for the score; in the lyrics we hear a summation of the themes of the game, yet the lyrics look towards the future. 'A new beginning' they sing, wholly appropriate for the cyclical nature of the game.

The structure also echoes the game, voices singing in counterpoint to one another before coming together in the final, defiant refrains. It's a triumphant piece of music for a remarkable artistic achievement.

[MagicianArcana]

Playing "The Flame in the Flood", has a great country soundtrack... here's the title tune...

I played that at my friend's place! He told me it was an interesting game and I'd probably like it. So he started it up on his computer and had me play it for a bit.
My favorite moment of the game was when I started rafting down the river and that song started playing. (I'm pretty sure the one you linked is what played.) It was very peaceful, I'm not sure how else to describe it. But I didn't wanna get off the raft because of the music.

Anyway, while visiting my parents' house a few days ago, I found my SNES and because I was inspired by a recent episode of Cane and Rinse, I played A Link to the Past. This got me playing a bunch of other SNES games I haven't touched for a while such as Super Metroid, Sim City, and FIFA. I believe it's the first FIFA game, and it has this really catchy tune that plays on the main menu. It's been stuck in my head for the past few days. I really like 16-bit era music.


Also, I recently finished playing Heavy Rain with a few friends and the soundtrack of that game really stood out to me.

[Flabyo]

Pokken!

This has a very late 90's, early 00's vibe to it. I wonder if the usual Tekken composers worked on this? It has their feel...

[mikeleddy83]

[Flabyo]

Time for another 'Evolution of a theme'... it's Rolento from Final Fight!

The arcade version is a little primitive...


The Mega CD takes things in a more 'Miami Vice' direction. It really doesn't work.


Double Impact makes it more chunky, while trying to stay true to the original piece...


Ultra Street Fighter 4 finally does it some justice.

[skidoosh]

I'll just leave this here:



Thought I'd pop back and expand on why I chose this track in particular over all the rest in which - to me at least, is the best game sound track out there.

This track to me represents the very pinnacle of the pinnacle (so far) game in this genre. The moment this track starts is the moment you have to use everything you've learned from being battered, mauled, stabbed, exploded, pounded, poisoned, bled and burned to death to face of against the only adversary left who is, at the very least your equal.

The way the music ebbs and flows matches the the battle as if every element of this dual has been engineered, choreographed even to be just so. The as the fight progresses and the piece moves through to the second movement as the battle progresses into it's second phase being led in by more bass have string instruments. As the choir begins the fight gathers pace as if to signify the realisation that you may be a competent opponent, but at the same time maintaining this controlled flow as you circle each other, slowly, in anticipation of each explosive, lightning fast lunge. The progression to the third phase of the fight sees the choir gently peter out giving this sense of exhaustion, which by this part of the battle is quite apt.

[sonicgreenhill]

I love the SEGA Dreamcast, it was the first console I bought with my own money when I was around 11 years old back in 2000 going from door to door posting leaflets and after 3 weeks of saving up and suffering from severe blisters, I finally owned the glorious white machine. As my favourite genre is JRPGs it only seems fitting that my first post would be from the wonderful JRPG that is Grandia 2. Grandia 2 certainly isn't my favourite JRPG on the system (that would be Skies of Arcadia) but the soundtrack just resonates with me like no other soundtrack could, it just feels like "SEGA" music.

The track I picked is FIGHT! Ver.2 which you can only hear if you've been ambushed in a random battle which I regularly did on purpose just so I can listen to this track, hope you enjoy and my word that keyboard playing!

[JaySevenZero]

I've merged the videogame music thread with the Sound of Play submissions thread as it didn't make sense having two separate threads relating to the same subject. However, if you'd like your chosen track to be included in future playlists for that podcast, then please leave a few sentences as to why you like the particular track so much so that can accompany it when we put them together.

[Flabyo]

Hmm, I thought the threads were serving different purposes personally, but hey ho.

I was putting interesting curios, new things I'd found and so on in the other thread, hardly stuff I'd recommend for the cast but worth a poke for people who were more broadly into the subject.

I'm not likely to keep the same thing up now, it'll make actually finding the recommendations in here harder for you.

[ratsoalbion]

Interesting curios are something that we've actively been requesting for Sound of Play since the early podcasts.

Keep on posting as you were, it won't be hard for me to pick out the tunes I want to share on the show - in fact the more the merrier.

[xbenblasterx]

I'd like to suggest this track from Ys Oath in Feghana, because for what is quite a simple track, it plays a vital part in what (in my opinion) is one of tightest and well crafted Hack 'n' slash games available. If you weren't already familiar with the Ys series before starting this game, you'd be quickly deceived by the opening 30 minutes into thinking Ys may be yet another epic and weighty JRPG, but moments into your first engagement with a pack of wild wolves, this track strikes up and sets the tempo for the rest of the game.

The Ys series is a fast, furious and often at times frustrating experience. A non-stop adrenaline rush, filled with nail biting 'only just made it' moments, and I think this track represents that best of all.

Cheers guys,

[Addman]

Apologies if this isn't the best place to suggest this, but I couldn't see a relevant section either.

Is there any chance you could post a download link on the page for Sound Of Play, similar to how you do for the main podcast? It's probably not something that a lot of people use, but with the way in which I consume podcasts, it would be greatly appreciated.

[JaySevenZero]

Is there any chance you could post a download link on the page for Sound Of Play, similar to how you do for the main podcast? It's probably not something that a lot of people use, but with the way in which I consume podcasts, it would be greatly appreciated.

Sure, no problem, you should now find a download link for the podcast at the bottom of each post

[Good Shot Janson]

My dear, sweet grandmother purchased a PlayStation for my 11th birthday and catalyzed in earnest my addiction to the medium. This jovial pusher of digital narcotics supplied me with several games like The Need for Speed, and Crash Bandicoot... games that were innocent and colorful. Games without violence. Among these early discs was the rather unassuming looking Treasures of the Deep. Kind old gran most certainly assumed this to be a peaceful game of adventure and treasure hunting amongst the hulks of ancient vessels laden with gold and silver. A Jacques Cousteau simulator. My grandmother was right about there being treasure... but it's safe to assume her ignorance when it came to main character Jack Runyon's proclivity for murder. You kill a lot in treasures of the deep. Both human and animal fall victim to your merciless harpoon gun, torpedoes, and sea mines. Sure, you can capture animals for research, sparing their lives and netting you some cash, but this was rarely the case in my game. Likewise there was an endangered species list of sorts, and slaughtering a blue whale imposed a hefty fine... but we did it. We all did it. Because we could. (Later in the game a sonar upgrade allowed the sub to lock on to turtles, sharks, humans, and other non-mechanical enemies with hilarious results.) Once you get past finding creative ways to empty the ocean of life, you're left with a surprisingly solid game. The controls are tight and navigating in a 3D underwater landscape is intuitive. Enemy variety is good, and attention to detail is unparalleled in a game of this era. Its obvious that much research went into creating the environments and life forms. The story is compelling and the villain gives Blofeld a run for his money. Finally, there's the soundtrack. It was hard to choose one piece from this excellent composition. Every track perfectly reflects the level it accompanies. There is one song that stands out above the rest, and is the one my grandmother would likely expect to accompany the game she perceived she had been purchased. This is "Wreck of the Conception" by Tommy Tallarico.

[Addman]

Sure, no problem, you should now find a download link for the podcast at the bottom of each post

Wow, thanks for the quick response. I'm already digging into the Sound Of Play archives. Great work!

I might as well make a suggestion while I'm here:


Composer: Noriyuki Iwadare

Very few people seem to remember Gynoug these days, but playing this game back in 1991 as an impressionable youngster, I was immediately captivated by the abject horror that it showcased. Hideous human faces stretched across the front of trains, giant cyborgs that threw a still-beating heart at you, crustaceans that literally turn themselves inside out just to kill you; it was all horrifically brilliant.

The game got darker and more twisted as it went on, but the relative niceness of the first level stood in stark contrast to the later levels. The music for the first level perfectly captures this contrast, with an almost joyful yet heroic melody that wouldn't sound out of place in a cutesy platformer starring an anthropomorphic animal of some kind. Almost immediately after the mid-level boss is defeated, the soundtrack changes to something more subdued, but I always appreciated the way the game deceived you in those opening moments through its music.

[ratsoalbion]

Great pick, Addman. Pretty sure I mentioned Gynoug on a recent show (possibly in reference to the composer).

[aidopotato]

Hallo guys.
Just recently started listening to this wonderful podcast, no idea why it took me so long to give it a go but I'm loving it.
I was gonna hold off on making suggestions until I'd worked my way through the backlog to make sure they hadn't already appeared, but you mentioned on a recent show that you'd never before featured any tunes from the Master System, so it's a safe to say you haven't included one of my faves from the 8-bit era... the Jungle Zone music from Sonic on the MS.
Lovely bouncy, summery little tune that I recall attempting to learn to play on my sisters yamaha keyboard, and i still find myself whistling on occasion, 25-odd years later. If memory serves, the Jungle Zone was a pig, so I probably spent a lot of time listening this tune back in the day, but it still holds up...

[Flabyo]

Time for another evolution of a theme! And this one goes with everything...

You all know it... hum along... (this is the slightly fancier Super Turbo version)


Streetfighter 4 gave us this chunkier mechanical sounding variant:


And finally, Streetfighter 5! (and the reason I've done this post in the first place) takes it back to it's original guitar led inspiration.